1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains generally to the field of cockpit indicators or display units that provide flight information to the pilot or flight crew of an aircraft.
2. Description of the Related Art
Forward-looking radar systems are well-known to those skilled in the art for acquiring and presenting information on a display unit. A common example of a forward-looking radar system is a weather radar system. This traditional or classic forward-looking radar system may be comprised of, in part, a transceiver and antenna. A transceiver may transmit microwaves within a sweep zone into the atmosphere via an antenna which, in turn, produces a focused beam. The transceiver may control the direction of the beam by steering the antenna horizontally and vertically. When the signal strikes or reflects off atmospheric meteorological conditions, part of the microwave energy is reflected back and received by the antenna. Based upon the acquired signals received by the antenna, the location of one or more hazards comprising hazard data could be determined. This information may be subsequently presented on a display unit, often in different colors to distinguish between levels of threat posed by the meteorological conditions.
In recent years, there has been a departure from the traditional or classic use of weather radar systems. Newer technologies have expanded the use of forward-looking radar systems. Once such system is the WXR-2100 MultiScan Hazard Detection Weather Radar System (“Hazard Detection System”) that has been developed by Rockwell Collins. The Hazard Detection System could employ an automatic weather sensor operative to 320 nautical miles that displays not only classic precipitation rates but also significant weather hazards without pilot manipulation of tilt or gain settings typical of classic weather radar systems. The Hazard Detection System has many key features including, but not limited to, forward-looking windshear detection with turbulence alerts, geographic weather conditions, true zero automatic antenna misalignment compensation, overflight and predictive overflight protection, enhanced turbulence detection, flight phase hazard analysis, and storm top information. The Hazard Detection System could also include vertical display of range and height indicator, enhanced ground clutter suppression, and path attenuation compensation. Although the Hazard Detection System employs a means for suppressing ground clutter, data associated with ground clutter may be employed as a source of providing terrain information in a terrain awareness and warning system (“TAWS”). When employed in a TAWS, hazard data representative of terrain information is acquired from a forward-looking radar system.
Current uses of the hazard data acquired from a forward-looking radar system include, but are not limited to, the depiction of hazards on display units and a source of proving hazard data in the construction a flight path around a hazard. One such example has been disclosed by Young et al in U.S. Pat. No. 8,234,068 entitled “System, Module, and Method for Constructing a Flight Path Used by an Avionics System.” While a forward-looking radar system has been used in this manner, it has been used in conjunction with a source of flight plan data such as a flight management system (“FMS”) and not as the sole source for determining a flight avoidance path around the acquired hazard(s) and/or the display of symbology corresponding to the path, where such symbology presents the pilot a visual steering cue for avoiding such hazard